Low-cost Androids like Moto E come with only 4GB of internal memory and that bottleneck makes it a no-go for many users.

SummaryThere are quite a few low-cost Androids releasing in India, all of them priced around Rs 7,000 mark.

There are quite a few low-cost Androids releasing in India, all of them priced around the Rs. 7,000 mark. But all of them — be it the Moto E, Micromax Unite or Lava X1— come with only 4GB of internal memory and that bottleneck makes it a no-go for many users.

With smartphones that cost Rs. 10,000 or more, internal memory is uncompromisable. But when the cost goes lower, 4GB is all you get so it’s not a question of compromising, it’s all there is. And soon enough, you will see the dreaded message when an app can’t be installed: “Insufficient storage available.”

Why is 4GB not enough? There is a microSD slot after all

The Moto E runs on Android 4.4 KitKat, and with this new version of the operating system, Google has changed the rules for how apps can be installed on your external storage. Without getting into too much jargon, here’s what you need to know: some developers can choose to make apps specifically for KitKat which can easily be installed on the Play Store. However, that’s not something most of the popular apps on the Play Store have right now, including the likes of Whatsapp, Dropbox and more.

Also, apps that come preloaded on your phone cannot be moved to the external storage. And this means that any update that the app gets will also be installed on your internal memory. Use it for a few months and that size quickly bloats up. Why, even with just a week of usage, the Google+ app had ballooned to 55.48MB while Google Search was clocking in at 38.18MB.

While apps are limited, the microSD card can be used to store and access all your media, be it the photos and videos you shoot or the music and movies you want to watch.

Is there a workaround?

Yes and no. The workaround for this limitation currently involves rooting your smartphone and then installing an app called SDFix, which lets apps be installed to external storage. However, rooting your phone is not something we recommend unless you know what you are doing.

We do recommend you install AppMgr III (App 2 SD), even if your phone is not rooted. This tool analyzes all the apps installed on your Android and tells you which ones can be moved to the SD card. In fact, whenever you install a new app or game, it will prompt you to move it